USER PREFERENCES

SITE OWNERS

'SATELLITE CATCHER' WILL USE MAGNETS TO CLEAN UP SPACE JUNK

Japan's Space Sweepers are taking it upon themselves to do a little spring cleaning in space.
One hundred and seventy million pieces of space debris currently orbit the Earth, according to estimates from the European Space Agency (ESA). Defunct satellites and other man-made objects rocket around the atmosphere at eight kilometers per second -- 10 times faster than a bullet.
Some chunks are as big as a truck, others smaller than a dime. But even the tiniest piece of cosmic junk poses an enormous threat to other satellites and spacecraft. More